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Wednesday, August 3, 2011

Teriyaki Chicken Salad with Rice Noodles

This salad is so different from anything I've made before. I would call this a grown up salad since most of my kiddos didn't appreciate it as much as my hubby and I did. Although a couple of the younger girls surprised me by loving it. It has so many great textures and flavors, but my favorite part is the rice noodles, which I think was a stroke of genius on my part, thank you very much. (Picture me patting myself on the back.) On a hot, humid summer day I also appreciated the fact that it didn't heat up my kitchen.

Honestly, I made up this recipe to use up the produce I had in my fridge. My garden is finally starting to produce and I was running out of room in the vegetable drawers. So this is really just a mixture of what I had on hand. Feel free to add red or yellow peppers for some nice color, spinach, napa cabbage or even purple cabbage would also be great additions. The dressing is sort of Thai inspired with peanut butter and red pepper flakes and adds a really nice kick.

**For the record, it is much easier to eat this salad if you break the noodles into 2" pieces.**

In a resealable bag, combine the chicken and teriyaki sauce and refrigerate for 4-6 hours. Place the chicken on a foil lined baking sheet and bake at 400° for 10-15 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Remove from pan and allow to cool.

While the chicken is cooking, prepare the salad. Combine the greens, carrot, cucumber, red onion, green onions and broccoli slaw in a large bowl. Refrigerate until ready to use.

For the dressing, combine all the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth, about 30-45 seconds. Add more water if necessary to reach the desired consistency. Refrigerate until ready to use.

When you are ready to put the salad together, begin by breaking the rice noodles into 2" pieces, pouring hot water over them and allowing them to sit for about 10 minutes or until tender. Place the noodles, peanuts and chicken in the salad and toss. Serve with peanut dressing.